Bhubaneswar, Aug 12 (IANS): The central government is building up pressure on the Odisha government for implementation of Aushman Bharat Yojana.

In a letter BJP parliamentarians from Odisha has requested Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to implement the central healthcare scheme. "We urge the government to join and implement the "Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) in the interest of people of Odisha,", they said.

The scheme seeks to cover 50 crore beneficiaries in the country, including over 60 lakh beneficiaries in Odisha. "We would like to reiterate the AB-PMJAY is targeted at the most vulnerable sections of society, consolidating efforts of the state and the Union for an overhaul of healthcare landscape," they said.

"Since inception of the scheme, we have assiduously sought your support for implementation of the scheme keeping in mind the acute public health challenges in the state. In the past weeks, we were encouraged to learn of the state government's reconsideration for implementation of AB-PMJAY," said an MP.

Odisha would not face any financial crunch as the Centre's collective efforts would ensure funding of the flagship scheme, they maintained.

Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Odisha five times in the last nine months and never missed an opportunity to seek the government's support in enrolling the scheme for reaping the benefits of the programme.